Our Current Honorees
The 2022 Man & Woman of the Year Honorees are Brian Koegle and Julie Sturgeon. The biographical information included here illustrates only part of their service to the community of Santa Clarita Valley over many years. They both believe deeply in the importance of volunteerism to build strong neighborhoods which will continue to be attractive to families and keep Santa Clarita a wonderful place to live. They are the most recent example of the how the titles of “Man of the Year” and “Woman of the Year” help to support the community’s amazing network of charitable nonprofit organizations that serve our friends and neighbors. Both Brian and Julie were nominated for the award by two nonprofits.

_edited.jpg)
Julie Sturgeon
2022 Woman of the Year

Brian Koegle
2022 Man of the Year
BIO: Julie Sturgeon is the President of Julie M. Sturgeon CPA and has practiced in Santa Clarita since 1990. Her focus has been on tax preparation and tax planning for both individuals and businesses. Sturgeon has clients in varying industries; from restaurants to medical and entertainment. She has co-owned Confidential Data Destruction Company with her Husband Steve, and played an active role in the sale of the company in 2019. Sturgeon has worked with multiple charities and organizations around the valley for many years, including College of the Canyons Foundation, Child and Family Center, Santa Clarita Valley Committee on Aging, Rotary International, Sulphur Springs School, La Mesa Junior High, Canyon High School, the Santa Clarita Chamber of Commerce, the Michael Hoefflin Foundation, AYSO, SCV Theatre Group, the Betty Ferguson Foundation and Soroptimist International of Greater Santa Clarita Valley. Sturgeon was nominated by the SCV Senior Center and the Rotatry Club of Santa Clarita.
BIO: Brian Edward Koegle was the first-born child of Michelle and Robert Koegle. Born at Grant Hospital in Columbus, Ohio on June 29, 1974, Brian quickly became the apple of his parents’ eye. Four years later, Brian was displaced as the only son when his parents brought home his brother Michael. Their sister Kathleen was the final completion of their family just two years later. Being an Irish-German Family, The Koegles loved to spend time with their large extended family and watch Ohio State Football… Go Bucks! Brian would spend his childhood sitting with his grandfather and watching Ohio State and the team up north football games and learning all about Woody Hayes’” Three Yards and a Cloud of Dust” offense. The Koegle Family lived in Newark, Ohio until 1982 when they moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, when Brian’s father, Robert, received a job offer as a Project Manager at Dowell. After quickly realizing that they were not Oklahomans at heart, Robert accepted a different job offer a year later as a project manager for Ronan Engineering that led them to California. The Koegle Family landed in Santa Clarita, California in 1983 and quickly found a perfect place to call home. Brian attended Santa Clarita Elementary School for third-sixth grade. He then continued to Arroyo Seco Junior High School and eventually graduated Saugus High School, class of 1992. During his years at Saugus, Brian got his first job working at Terry’s Chocolate Chippery and then moving on to work at Target for his senior year. After deciding, at the tender age of 8 to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps to become an attorney, Brian set his plan in motion after graduating Saugus High. He started his college career by attending College of the Canyons in Santa Clarita from 1992-1994. Brian then transferred to finish out his four-year degree at THE Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. (Go Bucks!) All throughout his college years, Brian worked at Radio Shack and could still tell you, to this day, some of the stock numbers for certain useless cords. It only took the first Columbus winter for Brian to realize that he loathed any sort of cold weather. The winter that Brian was in Columbus had, to this day, the coldest day ever recorded in Columbus -22. So instead of riding out his second year of winter in Ohio, he decided to pile on his credits and graduate a full semester early and head back to California as quickly as possible. Brian graduated The Ohio State University in December 1996 with a Bachelor of Arts and Sciences in Psychology and was a member of the Psi Chi National Psychology Honors Society. After graduating from The Ohio State University and moving back to sunny California, Brian spent a year immersing himself in the area of law by working in the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office- Newhall Courthouse during the day and selling women’s shoes at Robinson’s May at the Valencia Town Center at night. He was the number one seller of women’s shoes for the year he worked there… must be his light touch. Brian then continued to pursue his dream of becoming an attorney by attending Southwestern University School of Law. He was accepted into the SCALE Program, which completes a law degree in two years instead of three. Brian was a member of the Interscholastic Trial Advocacy Honors Program and apart of the Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity. Brian graduated Southwestern with his Juris Doctor in May 2001. It was May 2001 that Brian also started dating his future wife, Lindsay. Brian and Lindsay met in 1998 while Brian was attending law school and Lindsay was in High School. Lindsay and Katy, Brian’s sister, met in High School and quickly became fast friends. It was in high school that Lindsay found out that her friend Katy’s mom was a piano teacher and decided to take lessons. While Lindsay was waiting for her first lesson in the living room of the Koegle Household, Brian walked in and promptly asked “Who are you?” Lindsay though he was a snob, but we don’t need to discuss that. Brian and Lindsay became friends as their families became closer. They would become workout buddies and hang out at The Spectrum Club in Valencia and try to find each other people to date. It wasn’t until after Lindsay turned 18 and Brian was desperate for a date for his law school graduation after breaking up with his girlfriend that anything happened. They went to Red Lobster before the party and on the way home from the party, Brian stopped off at a Seven Eleven and bought Lindsay a singing, light up plastic rose then proceeded to pull over on the side of the road at Tourney and Magic Mountain when it was just a dirt lot and slow dance on the side of the road with Lindsay. Brian and Lindsay married on August 24, 2002, in Thousand Oaks, California in Brian’s parents’ backyard. In 2003 Brian and Lindsay welcomed their first daughter, Ashlyn to the world. Ashlyn was the first grandchild and especially spoiled. In September of 2005 Brian and Lindsay welcomed their second daughter Addison, to the family and because they just love girls so much, two years after that in August of 2007 they completed their trio of girls with Amelia. In 2004 Brian joined the Santa Clarita based firm of Poole, Shaffery & Koegle as an attorney. Over the next 18 years, Brian helped to build the labor and employment department of the firm and quickly became recognized within the community as an expert resource on California Employment Law. In 2009 Brian became a partner in the firm. In 2019 his name was added to the firm and is now Poole, Shaffery & Koegle, LLP Oldest daughter, Ashlyn is currently attending nursing school at Lipscomb University in Nashville Middle daughter Addison is currently a junior and researching colleges Youngest daughter Amelia is a freshman in High School The Koegle Family enjoys vacationing to the Caribbean and various states, attending Ohio State games and celebrating Ohio State football wins with friends and family Brian got his start in local philanthropy The Jaycees in 2005 where he learned the value of giving his time, talent and treasure. Brian credits his abilities to run a meeting and organizing an event on the skills and training her received as a Jaycee. Santa Clarita Valley Chamber of Commerce (nominated him) Brian was on the Government Affairs Committee for 6 years and has been presenting the Annual Employment Law Update for 6 years Senior Center (Nominated him) Volunteer celebrity waiter for 4 years followed by emcee of the event for another 4 years. Co Chair for Celebrity Waiter for 2 years and he was on the event planning committee for 5 years. College of the Canyons (Nominated him) Board Member of College of the Canyons Foundation 2008- present time COC Executive Committee Member 2015-present COC Foundation Board President 2018-2020 COC Measure “M” Citizens’ Oversight Committee COC “Yes on Measure E” Campaign Co-Chair HandsOn Santa Clarita Chairman of the Board from 2011-2016 Volunteered for Make a Difference Day for 6 years Hosted and Co-Chaired 9/11 Day of Remembrance Played Santa Claus twice for the 5K/10K Fun Run at Magic Mountain for HandsOn Santa Clarita Valley Bar Association Lawyer of the Year Award Recipient 2012 Founders Award Recipient for Outstanding Community Contribution 2007 and 2009 Executive Board 2007-2012 Board President 2009-2010 Co-Chair Public Relations/ Marketing 2005 Chair, Law Appreciation Day 2007, 2009 Santa Clarita Valley Youth Project Board of Directors 2007-2015 Executive Committee 2008-2010